


Mystery at Ouran

by sailorstar165



Category: D.Gray-man, Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types
Genre: Crossover, Crossover handwaving, Gen, High School, Humor, Modern Era
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-29
Updated: 2020-02-10
Packaged: 2021-02-27 03:39:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22470427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sailorstar165/pseuds/sailorstar165
Summary: A mysterious murder leads the exorcists to Ouran High School. Can they find the Akuma and the Innocence before it's too late? And can Allen endure the famous Host Club's antics? Some Allen x Lenalee, but not the prime focus.Repost from my fanfiction.net account
Relationships: Allen Walker & Fujioka Haruhi, Lenalee Lee/Allen Walker
Kudos: 20





	1. New Students

**Author's Note:**

> Originally published on fanfiction.net in 2009 (reposted with corrections to spelling, grammar, and minor stylistic improvements). This takes place after Timothy joins the order but before the Alma Karma arc. The time it was published will become apparent in later chapters with some convenient plot-hand-waving.

"Did you hear what happened?"

"The murder's old news, you know."

"No! I'm not talking about that! The corpse! I heard it turned to ash while they were examining it!"

"Spooky!"

Haruhi sighed. Conversations like this were all over the school, the result of the rich having too much time on their hands. Most _normal_ people wouldn't be talking about the recent murder as if it was a play or a show on television. Most _normal_ people would be a little worried about their safety, especially since the murder had taken place on the school campus and the perpetrator hadn't been caught yet. Granted, there _was_ increased security all over the place for their safety, but Haruhi still didn't think it appropriate to discuss the murder like it wasn't important. Someone had _died_ for crying out loud! The boy's family was still in mourning.

"Haruhi!"

Haruhi looked up and sighed in dismay. The twins looked too happy about something. This didn't bode well in the least. "Hikaru, Kaoru, what's—"

"We have new students!" Hikaru said brightly.

"They're all foreigners 'cept the one," Kaoru added.

"They've all lived in Europe for most of their lives."

"Two of them are gonna be in our class, and the other two will be with Mori and Hunny."

Haruhi turned back to the book she'd left open on her desk. "Maybe they'll stop talking about the murder, then."

The twins looked at each other, then back at Haruhi. "If your scared, we'll protect you," they said with smug grins. They went on either side of Haruhi and pulled her into a tight hug. "We'll make sure nothing bad ever happens to our sweet little Haruhi."

"You're starting to sound like Tamaki," Haruhi said, irritation creeping into her voice. She shrugged off their arms. "Class is starting soon. You guys should sit down."

The bell rang, saving her from their second attempt at hugging and teasing her. The teacher walked into the room, followed by two students. One seemed normal enough, with short black hair and a warm smile. The other, on the other hand, seemed out of place. He had short, white hair, downcast silver eyes, and a large scar over his one eye that stood out on his too-pale face.

The teacher wrote their names on the board in katakana for the class. The girl was Rinari Rii while the boy was Aren Woukaa. Haruhi raised an eyebrow at the strange names. Well, Rinari's was normal, but the boy's was a little strange.

"Good morning, class," the teacher said with a warm smile. "These two are your new classmates. Please make them feel welcome. They've come all the way from Europe to study at our school for a few weeks before they return home." He whispered something to the two.

"My name is Lenalee Lee," the girl said with a small bow. "It's a pleasure to meet you all."

"A-and my name is Allen Walker," the boy with white hair said nervously, bowing too. His Japanese didn't seem quite as good as the girl's.

 _That explains the weird names,_ Haruhi thought, glancing at the board again. Japanese didn't have an _L_ sound, so the teacher had simply translated the sound as an _R_ for the sake of kana.

"Please take a seat," the teacher instructed before erasing their names off the board. Haruhi watched the two as they made their way to the back of the room. "Please turn your books to page fifty three. We will be..."

* * *

Allen hadn't understood a word the teacher said. He was speaking too fast for him to follow with his small grasp of the language. It wasn't like he really needed to understand any of it, of course, but they were supposed to be undercover as students to investigate the mysterious murder of Mark Ziemba, an American student studying abroad at Ouran High School.

Well, it wasn't the murder itself that was mysterious. He'd been dismembered and left outside in front of the fountain for all to see. From what Komui had said, the authorities cleaned the scene up before any of the students had the chance to see anything, which would explain why none of the students seemed worried. Unlike them, he'd seen pictures in the mission information. He'd seen just how brutally the boy had been killed.

Still, those details weren't what got the Black Order involved. It was what happened after that caught their attention. The body suddenly turned to ash while the autopsy was being performed, which could only be the work of an Akuma. That was why Allen, Lenalee, and their fellow exorcists, Lavi and Kanda, were now attending Ouran.

The only good thing about this excursion, as far as Allen was concerned, was that Link couldn't follow Allen around the campus. Even with the recent murder, bodyguards weren't allowed on campus, so Howard Link had to stay back at the hostel. Technically, he was really there for everyone else's protection if the Fourteenth were to take control, but the Order wasn't about to explain that to the school. So, for the moment, Lenalee and Timcanpy were supposed to act as Allen's "stalkers" until they were off campus, when Link would resume his regular duties. Tim was hiding inside Allen's bag, recording everything that went on for Link to review and report later.

The bell signaling lunch sounded. They all made their way to the giant cafeteria, where Allen couldn't help but drool at the smell of delicious cooking. Steak... lobster... all the expensive foods Link would glare at Allen for ordering... It was enough to make Allen's mouth water.

"Allen, we're on a budget for this mission," Lenalee reminded him quietly when they sat down. "We packed our lunch for a reason, remember?"

Allen sighed and retrieved the ten sandwiches he'd packed and started munching on them. He'd never survive this school. Never in a million years.

"Good afternoon."

Both exorcists looked up at their greeters, the twins in their class. "Oh, hello," Lenalee said, setting down her chopsticks (she'd packed a traditional Japanese meal like Kanda). "You both are in our class, aren't you?"

"Name's Hikaru," the one twin said.

"And Kaoru," the other added.

"We'd like to welcome you both to Ouran," they said in unison.

Lenalee smiled sweetly, and Allen felt a small pang of jealousy that the smile was for them and not him. "Thank you, Hikaru, Kaoru."

"Hey, are all those for you?" the twins asked at once.

Allen swallowed. "Yes?" he said.

"You can eat that much?" they asked in unison.

"I... er... miss breakfast a lot, so I'm always really hungry at lunch," Allen lied in his bad Japanese. They'd missed him chowing down on the first three, but the seven he was still working on was still enough to stand out.

The two grinned at each other, then sat across from Lenalee and Allen. "So where are you guys from?"

"England," Lenalee replied, "near London."

"London's cold this time of year, isn't it?" Hikaru asked.

"Yes, very," Lenalee said, going back to her food. "Though, it's quite cold here as well."

"Hikaru, Kaoru, are you bothering them?"

Again, Allen and Lenalee looked up from their meal. This time, it was a shorter boy with dark hair. There was something strange about him, but Allen couldn't quite put his finger on it. Maybe it was how his voice sounded too feminine for a high school boy, but who was he to judge, considering his own voice?

"We weren't bothering them at all, Haruhi," Hikaru said.

"Not yet," Kaoru added with a devilish grin.

"You're welcome to sit with us too." Lenalee smiled brightly again. "We don't mind, right Allen?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I don't mind."

Haruhi sat next to Allen, across the table from the twins. "I'm Haruhi. It's nice to meet you."

Even close up, Allen couldn't figure out what was strange about the boy. So, Allen just stayed quiet and ate the last of his sandwiches.

"How'd you get that scar?" Hikaru asked.

The bell rang before Allen could answer—much to his relief.

* * *

At last, the school day ended. Allen and Lenalee had successfully learned a fat load of nothing about the murderous Akuma. Granted, they'd been in class all day and wouldn't have been able to collect information anyway.

Allen closed his books and carefully put them in his bag so as not to crush Timcanpy.

"What's that?"

Allen stopped what he was doing. "Um... what's what?" he asked the girl next to him.

"That gold ball thing in your bag. What is it?"

"A toy?" Allen replied, silently praying that Timcanpy would hold perfectly still in his bag.

"Is it from an anime?"

"Anime?" Allen repeated blankly.

"A Japanese cartoon."

"I don't know," Allen said, trying to smile. "I... saw him at a store and thought he looked cool."

"He looks like a golden snitch." The girl smiled at Timcanpy. "He's so adorable! I want one!" Then she looked up from the golem. "I'm Renge. You're Allen, right?"

"Yes. It's nice to meet—"

"Are you trying to cosplay someone?"

Allen tilted his head in mild confusion. "No. What's cosplay?"

Renge's eyes widened. She cried something in French, then pretended to faint. The way she fell was at too perfect an angle for him to catch her for it to be anything but an act, but he caught her anyway.

"Um, are you okay?"

"My dream guy has just come to Ouran. Of course I'm okay" She batted her eyelashes at him.

Allen blushed. He wasn't used to people flirting. Well, he was used to people flirting with his master, but he wasn't used to people flirting with _him_. "U-um..." He helped her stand back up. "I-I have to go."

Hands fell on both his shoulders. "That's right. He's coming with us," Hikaru and Kaoru said with devilish grins.

"Wait, what?" But Allen didn't get an answer to his question. The two twins just dragged him away.


	2. The Ouran High School Host Club

"Where are you taking me?!"

"Just a little someplace."

"Don't worry."

"This is kidnapping!"

Haruhi looked up just as the twins threw open the door and couldn't help but sigh. Hikaru and Kaoru had dragged the new kid to the music room the host club resided in for whatever reason. Lenalee was right behind the trio carrying her bag as well as Allen's.

"So this is the new boy?" Tamaki asked, looking Allen up and down.

"Yes, sir!" the twins replied, grinning widely and saluting.

"L-look, I really, _really_ have to get home or else I'll be six feet under and—"

Tamaki interrupted Allen complaint by snapping his fingers. "Kyoya, lend Miss Lee your cell phone so she can call Mr. Walker's parents. Hikaru, Kaoru, get him changed. He's joining the club."

Haruhi watched as the twins more than happily dragged the still struggling Allen to the backroom. "Sorry about all this," she said to Lenalee. "Tamaki doesn't understand the meaning of tact."

"It's all right," Lenalee replied, accepting Kyoya's cell-phone. "Tamaki seems a lot like my brother, so I'm used to it."

She dialed quickly. Once someone picked up on the other end, she said, "Hi, Link... Yes, I know, please don't be mad. It seems Allen's been... _asked_ to join one of our school clubs." Pause. "No, I think he's going to participate whether he likes it or not." Lenalee held the phone away from her ear as the man on the other end shouted at her. Haruhi distinctly caught the words "Akuma" and "mission" and wondered what the man meant. She didn't have long to wonder, because Lenalee started talking again. "No, we haven't forgotten. This will be helpful, I promise." Pause. "What kind of club? Well... Um..." She glanced at Haruhi.

"It's a host club," Haruhi admitted.

Lenalee nodded and repeated this information into the phone. She stood there, listening to what the other person said, and then replied, "They're still here as well. I'll ask if they can join. We'll see you later, Link." She hit the end call button and handed the phone back to Kyoya.

"What was the shouting about?"

Lenalee smiled. "Well, our... bodyguard, I guess you could call him, was expecting us all home right after school. Obviously, Allen and I are here, and our friends decided to explore the school a little bit. Speaking of which..." She waved to the door. "Lavi! Kanda!"

"What're you doing here, Lenalee?" the redhead with the eye patch asked. He looked even more foreign than Allen, and yet his Japanese was absolutely flawless. "And who's this lovely young lady you're talking to?"

"Get your eyes checked, baka usagi," the Japanese man next to him said. "He's wearing the male uniform."

Haruhi heard an audible sigh of relief escape Tamaki's lips. _Moron._ "I'm Haruhi. It's nice to meet you." She offered a hand.

Lavi frowned and eyed her up and down swiftly. "I think _you_ need your eyes checked, Yuu. She's obviously a woman. You can tell by her girlish figure. She's about the same size as Lenalee if you look close—"

Lenalee punched him. " _You_ shut up, Lavi, unless you want me to tell my brother than you've been guessing my sizes."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Try me."

Lavi shuddered and shut up. Haruhi assumed her brother was worse than Tamaki, who was currently hovering behind her to listen in on the conversation.

Just then, the twins came back into the room.

"Where's Walker?" Kyoya asked.

"He pushed us out," the twins replied with a shrug. "He said he could change into the costume on his own." They looked at each other, then at Tamaki. "He's rather girly. You sure he's not a she?"

"You mean like her?" Lavi asked, nodding to Haruhi.

Lenalee smacked him. "Lavi, what did I tell you...?" She turned to the twins. "Allen is most definitely a he. He's just a little shy is all."

"Allen's more of a guy than she is," Lavi replied, pointing at Haruhi. "Why's a pretty young girl like you masquerading as a host in a host club, anyway?"

"Haruhi's a guy!" Tamaki shouted, jumping in front of the person in question like a human shield. "You're mistaken. You're certainly not the first."

"But..."

Kanda rolled his eyes. "Drop it. It's not worth it."

"But..." Lavi sighed. Everyone was against him with this argument.

That settled, Haruhi glanced over at the room that had been dubbed the "changing room." Allen stepped out in black-and-white jester garb, complete with jester's hat and shoes. He looked comfortable in the costume, which wasn't how Haruhi _ever_ felt in the strange things the host club made her wear.

"So why do I have to wear this?" Allen asked, plucking at his costume.

"You're the only one who fit in the jester costume," Hikaru and Kaoru replied in unison. "We had two, one for each of us, but the place we got them from screwed up the sizes."

"But why do _I_ have to wear it?"

"Because you're joining the host club!" Tamaki said excitedly. He placed an arm around Allen's shoulders. "You're new and unknown to the school population and quite handsome! You're a natural prince type, which will help you do well here! Besides, you're European. All girls go for European, especially British or French."

Allen ducked and lifted Tamaki's arm off his shoulders. "If you want a flirt for your club, ask Lavi. I'm no good at this kind of thing."

"But you were a performer, were you not?" Kyoya asked calmly. "Think of it as performing."

"Being a clown is a lot different than hitting on women!" Allen replied but then stared at Kyoya. "Wait, how do you know about that? I haven't told anyone here that."

"Just accept that he knows everything," Haruhi said with a sigh. "You're better off that way."

"Allen-chan! Allen-chan!" Hunny cried, hopping off Mori's back and running up to the new kid. "You look really, really good as a clown! Are you joining the club?"

Allen stared down at the small child. "I wasn't planning on it." He turned back to Tamaki. "I have to go home. Our... guardian will be extremely angry if we don't get home right away."

"I already called Link. He said it'd be a good idea for you to join the club." Lenalee turned her sweet, carefully-crafted-for-Komui smile on Tamaki. "Would you have room for Lavi and Kanda as well?"

"We already have a devil-type," Hikaru and Kaoru said in unison. "And Mori's the wild-type. We don't need anymore."

Lavi stuck his lip out in a small pout. "I'm sure you have room for little ol' me."

"Not after you called Haruhi a woman," Tamaki said, setting his hands on Haruhi's shoulder. She shrugged off his hold.

"There's a problem with me being here, though," Allen muttered. "I'm not the best with Japanese."

Hunny grinned. "Most of our customers speak English, so everything'll be fine!" He tugged on Allen's hand. "So will you join? Huh? Huh?"

Allen sighed. " _Well, I suppose I have to,"_ he said in English.

* * *

Allen felt awkward, sitting on the plush couch with four pretty girls sitting with him. He chatted all the same. The girls were patient and seemed to enjoy speaking with him, though Allen didn't know why. He was a pretty normal person when he wasn't working.

" _So why do you wear your hair that way?_ " Renge asked with a smile. " _How do you dye it without destroying it?_ "

" _This is actually my natural hair color,_ " Allen replied bashfully.

" _And your scar?_ " asked one of the other girl. " _It must have been painful._ "

" _I'd rather... not talk about it,_ " Allen dodged. He'd discovered long ago how to avoid discussions about his scar: act like it hurt when people brought it up, and people tended not to bring it up anymore after.

The four girls quickly apologized for asking and changed the subject to Britain. These questions Allen was able to answer without any trouble. The conversation continued down a safe path until Allen decided to bring up the reason he and his friends were at Ouran.

" _I've heard about a murder here,_ " Allen prompted.

The gossips fell instantly into his trap. " _Oh! Yes, Mark... It's rather unfortunate. He was supposed to inherit some medical practice in the States._ "

" _The murder couldn't be about the practice. After all, it's not like a company that's putting another out of business._ "

" _Maybe it was a creepy creep!_ "

Allen nodded and tried to remember everything they were saying. He already knew it was an Akuma, but if the girls knew of anyone acting odd, he was sure they'd accuse them in an instant.

" _Do you know who could have done it?_ "

" _If we had an idea, we'd have turned him in to the police already,_ " Renge pointed out.

" _True. I'm sorry for asking._ " He smiled, hoping they'd forget everything. He was rather good at using his smile to make women do what he wanted, he was sad to say. He'd learned from Cross, and it had been essential to staying alive while with his master. If the person's wife, daughter, or other significant female in their life thought he was cute, he'd be able to stay alive a little longer. Usually.

" _Arren,_ " Haruhi said awkwardly, placing some tea on the table for him and his customers, " _Tamaki wanted me to tell you that you were doing well._ " Haruhi was not the best with English. She was to the English language as Allen was to Japanese: understandable, but far from perfect. Unlike Allen, however, she could understand and read English better than she could speak it.

" _Thank you—_ " Allen winced. " _Excuse me a minute,_ " he said quickly before rushing off with his hand over his scarred eye.

* * *

" _Why is this happening?_ "

Haruhi peeked into the back room of the host club. Allen was peering into the mirror back there, looking at something intently. " _Arren?_ "

Allen spun around, startled. "Oh! Haruhi, um... I'm fine; my eye just started hurting. Go back to the club." He wore a sheepish smile, but Haruhi could tell something was up.

"I brought some eye drops, if you want them."

"Huh? Oh! Thank you very much." Allen bowed quickly. "I don't need them, though. This happens all the time. I'll—" He stopped mid-sentence. "Get down!"

Before Haruhi knew what was happening, something white had knocked her to the ground and was hovering over her. There was a loud bang, like a cannon shot, then silence.

"Are you okay?" the white thing asked.

It took Haruhi a moment to realize that the white thing was actually Allen in a strange cloak. He had knocked her over and was holding her down with one white human hand and one black clawed hand. She opened her mouth to say something, but Allen quickly silenced her with his human hand.

"Don't scream," he said. "I can explain all of this, okay?"

Haruhi nodded, and he removed his hand. "I wasn't going to scream. I was going to answer your question."

"Oh."

"Would you mind getting off of me? I'm starting to lose feeling in my arms."

Before Allen could respond to her request, footsteps approached the room. Allen looked up like a frightened rabbit and the cloak disappeared. When Tamaki walked through the door, though, Haruhi realized it probably would have been better if he'd gotten off her _before_ making the magic cloak vanish.

"What's going on here?!"

"We heard cannon fire," the twins said, poking their heads in as well. They also stared at the awkward position Allen and Haruhi were in.

"I can explain!" Allen said, jumping back from Haruhi and holding up his hands.

"You better explain! How dare you do something so horrible and unspeakable with my little Haruhi!" Tamaki sobbed.

"Oh please." Haruhi sat up and dusted herself off. "His contact was bothering him, so he came back here to fix it. I was going to give him some contact solution," she nodded to the bottle that had slid a few feet from her when Allen knocked her over, "but when he came to take it, he tripped."

Tamaki frowned and sniffled a bit, but didn't pursue the issue any further. Allen, however, _did_ notice that he was under scrutiny the rest of the time he was in the club room.


	3. Discovery

"So what was all that about yesterday?" Haruhi asked the next day as they headed for the host club. Lenalee had gone to get Lavi and Kanda, so it was just her and Allen. "You said you'd explain."

"Well, um... you see..." Allen glanced around quickly, then whispered to Haruhi, "My friends and I are exorcists of an organization called the Black Order. We have reason to believe the murder was committed by an Akuma."

"A demon?" Haruhi repeated. "There's no such thing as demons."

"Not demons in the sense you're thinking," Allen explained. "Akuma are living weapons that evolve based on the number they've killed."

"That seems a little far-fetched."

Allen smiled ruefully. "You were about to be one of those numbers. When I knocked you over yesterday, it was because an Akuma shot at us. If those bullets had hit you, you would have died."

Haruhi stared at him. "So wait... you're saying one of those Akuma things tried to kill me?"

"Well, both of us, actually." Allen admitted. "The Akuma already knows we exorcists are here, so it wants to kill us before we're able to destroy it."

"How do you destroy them?"

"We have things called Anti-Akuma weapons that are made of a substance called Innocence," Allen explained. "My arm—the one you saw as a claw yesterday—is made of Innocence and has the power to destroy Akuma."

Haruhi nodded, remembering the arm. The claw had seemed dangerous, but the boy who claimed to wield it as a weapon hardly seemed so. Even when he'd had it activated, there was something about him that had made her feel safe and that she should trust him. "What do your friends use?"

Again, Allen glanced around nervously. He probably shouldn't be telling Haruhi this and might get yelled at later, but he told himself that knowing was better than not after he'd been discovered. "Well, those anklets Lenalee has can turn into boots. Lavi has a hammer in his bag that he can make bigger and smaller at will, so it doesn't look threatening right now. Kanda has..." He hesitated, as if unsure what to say about Kanda's weapon. "Kanda has a sword hilt he can turn into a katana."

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. "You're the only one with a weapon as a body part?"

"Yes." Allen wasn't about to explain the whole parasitic-, crystal-, and weapon-type thing to Haruhi. It was bad enough that he was talking about the mission, and he was beginning to regret his decision to be honest. "Please, don't tell anyone about any of this. I don't want you becoming the Akuma's target because you know something."

Haruhi agreed and Allen opened the door to the greenhouse the host club was using that day. The clubroom's wall still needed fixing, so until then, they'd be inside the glass building enjoying the snow outside.

"You're both late!" the twins called. Today there was no costume, much to both Allen and Haruhi's relief.

"Sorry, my contact fell out and Haruhi had to help me find it," Allen lied politely. "We haven't started yet, right?"

"We're just setting up," Kyoya replied, setting a vase of beautiful roses on the glass table Tamaki would sit at.

"Allen-chan, Allen-chan!" Hunny ran up to the white-haired exorcist and grinned. "A lotta girls were saying they wanted you as their host! You're really, really popular!"

Allen smiled, but didn't respond to the comment. Instead, he said, "So... um... what happened with that wall yesterday?"

Everyone shrugged. Nobody besides Haruhi and the exorcists knew about the Akuma, and Allen wanted it to remain that way. He sat down and smiled. "When do the customers get here?"

"You're up to something," the twins said.

"Huh?"

"They're right," Kyoya said, frowning. "You were against the idea of being part of this club yesterday. Why the change of heart?"

What could he say? It wasn't like he could tell them he was there to gather information on the Akuma or the Innocence that was suspected to be at the school. So, he made the excuse of, "I was nervous yesterday. I'm not good with my Japanese yet, so I didn't want to embarrass myself in front of a bunch of people."

"Ah, your Japanese it perfectly all right," Tamaki butted in. "It's as if you've spoken it for all your young life."

Allen raised an eyebrow. " _Please don't lie, Tamaki. I'm terrible at Japanese and you know it._ "

"Hey, Allen-chan."

"Yes?"

"What's this?" Hunny held up Timcanpy, who was staying perfectly still in his hand. "Is it a toy or something?"

"Y-yes," Allen lied. "Um, can I have him back?"

Hunny looked down at the golem in his hands. "Why do you have a toy like this, Allen-chan? You don't seem like the type to play with toys." He stretched Timcanpy the way Allen sometimes did when he was bored. "Its kinda funny looking too."

" _Meow_."

"Oh look, a cat," Haruhi said as a little spotted kitten stepped out of the foliage in the greenhouse. She knelt down and patted its head. "Are you lost?"

 _Don't move,_ Allen thought, not taking his eyes off Timcanpy. Ever since the golem had been eaten, Timcanpy had a fear of cats. Even though he was now far too big for a cat to swallow, poor Tim was paranoid that the furry creatures would still find a way. _Don't move. Don't move._

The kitten eyed Timcanpy and mewed again. That did it.

Timcanpy shot out of Hunny's hands and clung to Allen's head. The host club members stared at the living "toy."

"How'd it do that?" Tamaki cried. "Is it a robot? An alien? A—"

"It's a golem brought to life by magic."

Everyone jumped and spun around. A person wearing a black cloak came and scooped up the spotted kitten with the hand not covered by a cat puppet. "Though, I've never seen one that looks like a golden snitch before..."

Allen froze. "W-what are you talking about?" he said with a small, nervous laugh. They hadn't come up with a cover story for Timcanpy, having gone with the assumption that Tim would hold still and pretend to be a toy when at school. Deciding he needed a good excuse on the spot, Allen began with the first thing that came to mind: "M-my friend's brother's an inventor. He created this little robot and called it a 'golem.' H-he gave this one to me to hold on to while he got the patent and all that..."

The cloaked person frowned. "Really? Will there be a black one?"

"Um... sure?" Allen lied. "I'm not sure when he'll get a company to produce them and all that stuff. I don't really understand what he has to do, so..."

The twins turned on their flashlights and pointed them at the creepy student. "Nekozawa, you'll scare away the customers."

Nekozawa let out a cry and ran away from the light. The twins kept pointing the flashlights at him until he was out of the greenhouse and running back to the school building.

Allen sat there, staring at the black cloaked retreating figure. "Um... who was that?"

"Nekozawa, head of the Black Magic Club," Kyoya answered. He pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose, then looked appraisingly at Allen and Timcanpy. "Now then, I've never heard of this 'golem' toy you're talking about. My family has connections all over the world, especially in the United Kingdom. We'd have heard something about it." He smiled darkly. "So what's the truth, Walker?"

Allen didn't even have time to think of an excuse before a certain samurai shouted, "Moyashi!"

Automatically, Allen snapped, "It's Allen." He paused, then, "Um, hi, Kanda."

"Why are you showing off Timcanpy?" he growled, hand in his pocket. Allen knew he was itching to draw Mugen and kill him for revealing the oversized golem. He probably would have, too, if Lenalee didn't smack him in the head with her bag. Kanda glared at her, but said nothing.

"Are we missing something?" Tamaki asked, looking between the three exorcists.

"A big something, milord," the twins hinted in unison. They just couldn't wait to cause some trouble. "And Allen'll explain, right?"

Allen was caught between a rock and a hard place. He glanced over at Lavi and Lenalee, then said, "Um... Lenalee's brother made this golem toy thing. He said he was getting it patented, but... um... he tends to get distracted by his next project easily."

Lenalee caught on. "If I'm not there to tell him what to do, he might forget to eat!"

Kanda, meanwhile, hadn't. "What are you two talking about?"

All three exorcists wanted to smack Kanda, but resisted the urge. Instead, Lavi said, "You know, Komui's a toy inventor. He made Timcanpy as a prototype."

"What the hell are you on?"

"It seems your stories don't add up," Kyoya said, smiling wryly. "So then, why don't we get the truth?"

The three exorcists and Timcanpy glared at Kanda, then Allen turned to the host club. "It's not really important, is it? Tim's just a prototype toy, and Bakanda over there's just a moron," the white-haired exorcist said, his smiling poker face hiding his irritation with the swordsman.

"We don't believe you," the twins said, thumbs down. "Tell the truth, kid."

Allen looked helplessly at Lenalee. "Well, I guess we have no choice," the girl said at last. "We're exorcists of a secret organization devoted to destroying Akuma. Timcanpy is a special golem with recording abilities, and he's here to chronicle our current mission."

"You fight demons?" Hunny said excitedly. "Can I help? I'm good at martial arts!" He kicked and did a few punches to show off. Even though it looked adorable, Allen could see some power behind them.

"Um... You can't exactly fight Akuma with physical strength," Allen tried to explain. "You have to be an exorcist with an anti-Akuma weapon."

The twins held out their hands expectantly. "Then give us some."

"This isn't a game," Kanda growled.

Lavi stepped between them and Kanda. "Yuu-chan's right. Akuma are dangerous weapons that kill normal humans like you."

Tamaki looked thoughtful a moment. "They kill humans? Then... the recent murder was an Akuma attack! We must tell everyone!"

"No!" Allen shouted, grabbing Tamaki's sleeve before the blond could run to the school building. "You can't tell anyone. We're not sure if the Akuma knows we're here yet or not. Well, I'm sure it knows I'm here, but I don't think it knows the others are exorcists. You can't tell _anyone_. This is top secret."

"They'll let you help if you don't tell anyone. You can be a spy and give them any information you hear," Haruhi pointed out. By now, she'd learned what to say to trick Tamaki into anything. "You'd be important in their investigation. You have access to things they can't see, after all."

Tamaki's face lit up. "Can I really help you guys?"

"How can a stupid rich kid like you help?" Kanda grunted. He glared at the blond, but Tamaki didn't seem to notice. The king of the host club was too preoccupied with babbling about how amazing he was for helping them.

"Tamaki's father is in charge of Ouran High School," Kyoya explained. "I also have connections all over the world. I could get you any information you might need."

"That's awfully kind of you to offer," Lenalee said, "but we'd rather you not get involved. Like Kanda said, this isn't a game. You could get seriously hurt or die."

"You underestimate us," the twins said with a shrug. "Hunny and Mori are martial artists, Kyoya can find information on anyone or anything, Tamaki can get any girl to do anything if he smiles, and we're the best pranksters in school. We can stand up to any Akuma."

Allen sighed. "You know that hole in the wall in the clubroom?"

The club looked at him, confused.

"That was because of an Akuma."

Kanda grabbed the front of Allen's uniform. "Why didn't you tell us you were attacked by the Akuma?!" he snarled.

"I didn't see it, so..."

"Didn't see it?" Lavi repeated. "What about—"

A cannon sounded, and glass shattered. Allen activated his Innocence and covered everyone with his cape. The glass of the greenhouse rained down, but under the protection of the Crowned Clown, no one got hurt. Only Allen, who'd only protected his face with the masquerade mask, was injured, but it was a small cut on the cheek.

Allen scanned the area, knowing the Akuma had to be nearby. And yet, there weren't any footprints in the snow outside the greenhouse. "Where's—?"

"Where's the Akuma, Moyashi?" Kanda shouted. Like Allen, he'd activated his Innocence as well.

"I don't know." Allen didn't deactivate his Innocence, though. He kept it ready, in case the Akuma came back. "My eye isn't reacting. It hasn't reacted since we got here."

"Why not?"

"Maybe it's like before," Allen muttered. "Remember at that orphanage? My eye didn't react then either."

Kanda grunted in acknowledgement. "Then where is it?"

"Long gone, probably," Lavi said, shrinking his hammer but not putting it away just yet. "Guerilla warfare tactics. It sneak attacks us, then runs away."

Kanda glared at the redhead. "Then what's the next move, genius?"

Lavi threw his hammer back into its holster in his bag. "Not much we can do. The Akuma'll probably come back, but we can't do anything until it shows up again."

Allen deactivated his Crowned Clown, and Kanda made the ruby-red blade of his Crystal-Type Innocence vanish. It was good timing, too. Some of the girls were coming to see their favorite hosts.

"What's happened?" one asked.

"Structural problems," Kyoya said. His poker face was even better than Allen's. "There was a strong gust of wind, and the panes that fell out caused a chain reaction."

"That's horrible! No one was hurt?"

"Not badly. Allen wasn't quite quick enough to run for cover under the tables."

The girls turned to Allen. "Oh no!"

"That's horrible!"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Allen replied. "Just a little shaken."

Tamaki took one of the girl's hands and kissed it lightly. "We're going to have to ask you lovely ladies to leave before you get hurt. With the clubroom damaged and this greenhouse falling apart, we'll have to cancel for the day. Tomorrow, the room should be fixed, and we'll treat you ladies to some extra special treats."

The three girls blushed furiously and agreed to come back the next day. Without questioning any of the story they were given, they ambled through the snow back to the school building.

Lavi watched the girls leave, impressed. "Wow. I think they'd be really helpful. Right, Yuu-chan?"

"Che." Kanda put his sword hilt back in his bag. "Do what you want."

Lenalee watched Kanda trek away through the snow. "Well, I guess that settles that." She bowed to the host club. "We appreciate and accept your offer for help. But please, be _careful_. The Akuma disguise themselves as humans. If anyone is acting strangely, tell us. Don't try to handle anything on your own."

Tamaki took Lenalee's hand and kissed it as he had with the other girl before. "You needn't worry about us, Miss Lee. We shall do our best."

Lavi smirked. "Careful. Timcanpy records everything he sees, and if you keep flirting with Lenalee, her brother'll come after you."

Lenalee gave Lavi a look and pulled her hand away from Tamaki. She turned to Allen and said, "If there's no club tonight, you should head back. I'm sure Link is throwing a fit by now."

Allen nodded, scooped up his bag, and headed "home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's where this fic's age shows with Kanda's innocence... I made Kanda's innocence a crystal type that could shrink down for plot-convenience crossover hand-waving. It was mildly satisfying to later learn I was partially correct later on.
> 
> This chapter is also the most heavily edited so far with a few bits of dialogue rewritten, but the gist is the same as the original posting on fanfiction.net back in the day.


	4. The Story

The entire club greeted Allen and Haruhi as they entered the Host Club with their usual bit meant for customers, each wearing a different costume with no real theme to speak of. The costumes weren't as over the top as some of those the Host Club was famous for, Haruhi was happy to see.

Hikaru was wearing a mostly black costume with some red, blue, and yellow on it and shoes to match. His twin, instead of wearing a matching costume, was wearing a tan and gray costume with a checker pattern in a line on his short-sleeved jacket and a checkered wristband.

Mori and Hunny weren't wearing coordinated costumes either. Mori was in a traditional Japanese hakama with a crimson top and a samurai sword at his side. Hunny, on the other hand, was wearing a blue girl's sailor suit uniform and had a little white hat on his head. As adorable as he was, he hardly seemed to go with his samurai-dressed body guard.

Kyoya, meanwhile, was in a white suit and hat that seemed straight out of a 1920s American gangster movie.

Next to Kyoya sat the ever well-dressed Tamaki. Tamaki was wearing an elegant dark green cape with a diamond design at the bottom over dark blue ensemble. He seemed the only one to be dressed normally for a Host Club member, or as normal as their costumes ever were.

"You two, change!" the king of the club commanded, obviously wrapped up in whatever he was supposed to be dressed up as.

"Into what?" Allen asked, tilting his head in confusion. Apparently, he was just as lost with the theme as Haruhi.

The twins shoved a bag in each of their hands. Allen politely let Haruhi go change first. When she returned, she was wearing a tight dark coat with matching boots. Allen left while Tamaki was fussing over Haruhi's outfit and came back wearing a black version of Mori's costume with a white sleeveless jacket over it.

"The theme is Anime and Video Games!" Tamaki said excitedly without any prompting from Haruhi and Allen. "Renge helped us choose outfits that best fit our personality and types." He grinned, and pointed at each member of the club in turn. "Hikaru and Kaoru are Sora and Roxas, respectively. Mori is the great Rurouni Kenshin while Hunny is cute little Momiji from Fruits Basket. Kyoya is the sweeper Sven from Black Cat—really suits him, don't you think?—and I am the great Norse god Frey from Matantei Loki Ragnorak." He grinned, waiting for the other two to ask what they were.

Allen took the bait. "And we are...?"

"You're the captain Hitsuga Toshiro from Bleach—Renge picked it because of your hair and height—and our lovely Haruhi is Saya from Blood+!" He hugged the host in question. "Renge adjusted the costume a little to suit you better with the shorts, but it fits Haruhi so perfectly!"

"Right..." Haruhi muttered, escaping Tamaki's embrace somehow. "I'm just going to change back now, if you don't mind..."

"You can't!" the twins said, blocking her way. "You have to be part of the theme!"

Allen plucked at his own costume. "What theme? It looks like you guys just raided a costume store."

"No, no, no!" Tamaki cried. "All these costumes are specially handmade for quality and—"

The door opened, interrupting possibly one of Tamaki's longest rants ever before it even started. Lavi entered with Kanda and Lenalee, grinning up a storm as always.

"Wow. Nice look, Allen. Trying to be more Japanese like Yuu-chan?" The comment earned him a punch from the dark-haired exorcist next to him.

"No, apparently Renge came up with all this," Allen replied, sitting down on one of the couches.

"Renge?" Lavi repeated.

"She's a girl in our class," Lenalee explained. "She's always talking about anime and video games."

Kanda rolled his eyes and sat in one of the many chairs around the music room. "Well? Where's that information you promised us?"

Kyoya pulled out a laptop and set it on the table. As it booted up, he asked, "Why is there an Akuma here at this school? And what are we looking for, exactly? You've only said that you're hunting demons, but you never said what they looked like or what they may be here for."

Lavi leaned back in his chair, brow furrowed. "Well, there's two possibilities for what the Akuma's looking for. It's either decided this is an excellent place to kill humans or it's looking for Innocence. The first can't be the case, or everyone in this school would already be six feet under. Which means it's looking for Innocence, and we have to find it before the Akuma does."

"And an Innocence is...?" Kyoya prompted.

"It's what our anti-Akuma weapons are made of," Lenalee explained.

The twins glanced at each other, then at Lenalee. "What's it look like?"

"Few Innocence are in their true form anymore," Lavi replied with a shrug. "Typically, humans have found them and turned them into something else. The one thing that's constant is that strange things happen if there's an Innocence nearby."

"Strange how?" Haruhi asked. She knew better than anyone that "strange" was a broad category.

"Like a grandfather clock that makes a city repeat the same day over and over again," Allen said, recalling one of his first missions as part of the Black Order. "Or a doll that moves on its own for over five-hundred years."

Hunny looked up at Mori, then at Allen. "There's a lot of rumors like that. I don't remember most of them, but if you ask some of the customers, they might know."

"Che, that's helpful," Kanda groused.

"Don't mind him," Lenalee said. "So what was your other question again?"

"What do Akuma look like?" Kyoya asked, entering his password into the laptop. "How will we know it's an Akuma?"

"They look like humans," Lavi explained. "The Akuma is probably disguised as a student here."

The laptop finished loading and Kyoya brought up a search of the information he had. He frowned. "There weren't any new students before the murder."

Kanda rolled his eyes. "Che. We don't mean the Akuma _came_ here. It's disguised as a student that's _been_ here."

The hosts looked at each other, then at Kanda. "What do you mean?" Hunny asked, his voice shaking ever so slightly.

Lenalee gave Kanda a look, then started explaining. "Akuma are created when a person tries to bring someone back from the dead. The Akuma that's created as a result kills the person who resurrected the soul and wears their corpse to blend in among humans."

Tamaki visibly shivered. "Y-you mean..."

"A student here is actually an Akuma," the twins finished, looking at each other. Their faces were masks of calm, but Allen could see the fear in their eyes.

"Not necessarily," Kyoya said logically. "There's also the possibility that a teacher is an Akuma."

"Then check those records of yours!" Tamaki commanded. "Find everyone who has had a recent death among their friends and family!"

Kyoya punched a few keys, but nothing came up on the screen. "It seems none of our customers or anyone relating to them fit that criteria as far as I can tell. No one directly connected to our customers has suffered any losses. I don't have that sort of information for everyone."

This surprised Haruhi. "I thought you had something on everyone in the school."

The other host just shook his head. "I have information on everyone in this school, but outside of customers and their close friends, we have no need for that type of information."

The door opening instantly silenced all conversation. Renge, along with the girls from the day before, all walked in, the first grinning up a storm.

"Oh, so you did take my suggestions!" she squealed before glomping Allen. "You look great as Toshiro! I knew you'd look good in that!" She frowned, though, when she saw Allen's gloved hands. "But Toshiro doesn't wear gloves."

Allen snatched for a lie, any lie, that would prevent them from finding out about his arm. "I—er—I..."

"Allen's hands are scarred from burns," Haruhi stated, saying the first cover story that came to her mind. She'd heard enough rumors in class to make up something that people would believe.

Renge gasped dramatically, as did the girls behind her. Obviously, the'd taken the bait. "Burns? From the car accident that caused that scar?"

Allen stared at Renge like she was crazy. "Who said anything about—"

"Yes, that's the one!" Lavi interrupted, knowing a good line when he heard one. "Nasty scars. You wouldn't want to see them."

"You poor thing!" Renge cried, pulling Allen into yet another bone-crushing hug.

Lenalee's smile twitched, and she crossed her arms. "Anyway, I'd like to request Allen as a host," she said, straining to keep her voice even. She smiled at Lavi and Kanda, barely hiding her irritation. "You two can go home. I'll hang around here with Allen for a while."

The two male exorcists exchanged glanced before agreeing with Lenalee's plan and leaving. Allen assumed the two were going to wander the halls and pump people for information on any recent deaths.

"Well, that's settled," Tamaki said, all traces of fear gone. "So let's finish getting ready!" He smiled sweetly at their customers. "I hope you don't mind waiting a few moments for us to finish setting up."

The girls all blushed as Tamaki bowed. "O-of course we don't mind."

"Wonderful!" The king of the host club beamed at them, then turned to the other hosts. "Well? Let's finish getting ready!"

* * *

Allen didn't get any useful information while there. Well, he'd noticed that Lenalee seemed really pissed with him, but it was beyond him what she was so mad about. He thought briefly that it was because he was flirting with the many girls who had requested him, but he knew Lenalee wouldn't care about something like that and soon discarded the idea.

The twins beckoned the two exorcists just as the last girl left the room. They were grinning up a storm. "We've found out something!"

"Really? What?" Lenalee's anger seemed to dissipate at the news.

"According to Renge, there's a magic mirror somewhere in the school," Hikaru started.

"The legend says that the mirror's been around since the school first opened and that if you look into it and say a certain poem, it'll show you who your true love it," finished Kaoru.

"A mirror that shows you your true love?" Lenalee looked thoughtful a moment. "Well, it could be what we're looking for if it actually exists. Do you know which mirror it is?"

The twins both shook their head. "None of our customers seemed to know. Apparently it's all luck of the draw to find it. It's one place one minute, another the next," Hikaru explained.

"Meaning it either moves on its own or it's a mirror that moves around a lot," added Kaoru.

"If that's true, then it _has_ to be Innocence," Allen whispered to Lenalee, who nodded.

"And if it's true, we have to find it before the Akuma."

"We'll keep an eye out for it," the twins said, grinning. "We'll see if we can figure out the poem that's supposed to make it work."

"Thank you very much," Lenalee said. "We'll keep an eye out as well."

All the hosts said their good-byes, and Allen and Lenalee headed home. As they walked, Allen decided to take advantage of their moment alone to ask, "Why were you upset before?"

Lenalee smiled sweetly in innocent confusion, making Allen wonder if she had been mad at all. "Don't worry about it, Allen. It's not your fault."

But Allen couldn't help but feel that it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dated anime/video game references are dated! :D


	5. Mysteries and Murders

Days turned to weeks, and still no trace could be found of the Akuma. Everything was too quiet at Ouran. Well, "quiet" wasn't quite the right word. The school was still as crazy as it ever was, and among the craziness was the ever-famous host club's antics. More and more girls came to request Allen as a host, meaning it was harder for Allen to pump information, which he soon realized, none of them had. As far as Allen could tell, the Akuma had left, possibly with the Innocence in tow.

 _No. I've got to be positive,_ Allen thought, splashing his face with cold water in the boy's bathroom. He'd escaped the host club set up for the moment so he could piece together what little he'd found out. He'd discovered the rhyme needed to use the mirror from Renge, who seemed up-to-date on many of the school's mysteries. Too bad she didn't know anything about the Akuma. If she did, their job would've been a lot easier.

As no one else was in the bathroom, Allen decided to try the saying and see if any of the mirrors in the bathroom was the one they were looking for.

" _Mystic mirror please show me with who it is I'm meant to be._ "

Nothing happened. At least no one was around to see how stupid he felt. For a moment, he wondered if the rhyme was the right one, but it wasn't like he had any other magic words to try. Besides, it was always the strange, hard to say things that made magic mirrors work in fairy tales. Best of all, it was in English. He didn't have to remember any Japanese, or that's what he hoped, at least.

Sighing in disappointment, he returned to the host club, where many more girls were waiting for his attention. Lenalee hadn't stayed that day, saying she wanted to see if she could find anything out with Lavi and Kanda instead. Allen could tell she was lying. Despite what she said, he could tell she was mad at him, and he was finally starting to figure out it was because of his hosting at the club. But why? Why would she be mad at him for that? It was her idea, after all, to work at the club to collect information. Maybe it was because he wasn't getting much in the way of information...?

But that couldn't be it, either. He was finding out more than both Lavi and Kanda's efforts combined by poking around the host club. There had to be another reason she was mad at him, but what other reason could there possibly be?

" _Hey Allen!_ "

Allen turned and smiled at Lavi. " _Did you find anything?_ "

Lavi shook his head sadly. " _Nothing. No sign of it anywhere._ " He sighed and started walking with Allen to the host club. " _It's times like these we could really use that peeper of yours, Allen. Of course it has to be out of commission when we really need it, neh?_ " He smiled at his friend, wanting to make sure the boy knew he was joking and wasn't mad at him like Kanda for something beyond his control. When Allen stayed silent, however, Lavi added, " _I'm only teasing, Allen._ "

" _I know._ "

" _Then what's with the silent treatment?_ "

Allen sighed. " _What if the Akuma attacks someone again before we find and destroy it? There's only so long it can keep quiet before it goes and kills someone else._ "

" _We'll find it before it hurts anyone._ "

Allen smiled weakly at his friend. " _Yeah._ "

* * *

Another day passed, and then another. Haruhi was heading for the host club with Allen, but there was some kind of commotion in the hall. Allen stood on tiptoe to try and see over the other students, but despite the couple inches gained, wasn't tall enough to see over everyone's heads. He turned to Haruhi and whispered quickly, "Wait here," before disappearing into the horde of people.

When he didn't return right away, Haruhi pushed through the crowd. Surprisingly, the students were more than willing to let her get to the front. In fact, some actually moved to make a path for the host. It wasn't until she reached the front that she realized the reason why.

There, in the center of the crowd, were Hikaru and Kaoru. Both were staring up at the ceiling, where a disemboweled corpse hung by the neck. Blood dripped around them and on their faces, but the two were too stunned to move. Only Allen, who was standing with them, seemed to know what was going on.

It was also he who broke the stunned silence. "Call the police!" he shouted to the terrified and shocked student body.

The silence broken, the students began to panic. Some screamed. Others fainted at the sight. Even Haruhi, who normally was cool as a cucumber under stress, felt sick at the sight.

Allen stumbled through the panicking crowd and touched Haruhi's shoulder with his right hand. "Haruhi, go call the police. I'll stay here and make sure whoever did this doesn't come back."

Haruhi nodded mechanically and pushed through the crowd. Renge was in the back, too far away to see what had happened and thus completely confused by the panic that had engulfed the other students.

"What's going on?" she asked, trying to see through the bustle and hubbub. "What happened?"

"No time to explain," Haruhi panted. It was like running a marathon, fighting through all those people. "Do you have a cellphone?"

The otaku retrieved the device in question from her bag and handed it to Haruhi. "What happened?" she repeated as Haruhi dialed.

Someone picked up on the other end, and before they could even ask what the emergency was, Haruhi stated, "Someone's been murdered."

* * *

The police arrived soon after the call. Allen and the twins were taken away for questioning. Allen, being used to investigations by now, was calm and collected, unlike the twins. The twins were still in shock from the scene they'd stumbled across.

"What did you see?" the officer asked.

"I was walking through the hall with a friend when we came across a huge crowd," Allen explained for what felt like the thousandth time. "We were trying to get to a club, and I figured that the people were just blocking the hall, so I shoved through. When I got to the middle, I found Hikaru and Kaoru standing in shock under the body."

The officer raised an eyebrow at Allen. "And how are you so calm about all this, Mr. Walker?"

Allen smiled. "Horror films are very popular in Britain. They can seem quite real there, and I'm a bit of a fan. I suppose I've just been desensitized."

The officer "harumphed" and turned to the twins, who were still sitting together, abnormally silent. "And you two. How did you both find the body?"

Hikaru was the one to answer. "We were walking through the halls and messing around with each other when some blood dripped onto Kaoru. I thought it was some kind of joke until we looked up and saw..." He trailed off and shook his head, unable to finish.

"Was anybody else with you at the time?"

"No. Just me and Hikaru," Kaoru answered.

"So no one can confirm that you _both_ didn't do it?"

Allen glanced over at Hikaru and Kaoru, then turned to the officer. "Sir, if they did it, I don't think they'd be in quite that much shock."

"So are you suggesting the perpetrator would be more calm, like yourself?"

The cursed teenager frowned. "Sir, if you're attempting to place the blame on me, you're sadly mistaken. Besides, you don't have all the facts."

"What facts?" the officer spat.

"That girl was in our class," Allen explained. "She felt sick and went to the nurse's office during seventh period. Hikaru, Kaoru, and I were all in the classroom together, and no one left until after the bell had rang. By then, the victim should have gotten to the infirmary, but instead, she was found three minutes after the bell strung up in the hallway." He shook his head. "There's no way any of the three of us could have done such a thing."

"Sherlock Holmes wannabe," the officer muttered. "Then who could've done it, huh?"

Hikaru was about to open his mouth, but Kaoru hushed him with a look the officer didn't notice. Allen instead answered, "I would check for students who left their classroom during seventh period near that hallway. It seems like a opportunistic murder."

The officer cursed to himself, but could no longer detain the three as witnesses. Another officer escorted the little group out of the police station, where Haruhi and the other hosts were waiting, with Lenalee and the rest behind them.

"Are you all okay?" Tamaki asked. "I heard how gruesome it was from Haruhi."

Allen glanced at the twins, who still seemed shaken but on the road to recovery, and nodded to Tamaki. "We're fine."

"Walker," Link said, stepping forward. "You are to come home with us at once."

Allen nodded, then turned to Hikaru and Kaoru. "You two be careful. I could tell you both are prime suspects in that cop's eyes."

"What?" Hikaru sounded angry. "But we just found the body! We didn't do it! It was that Akuma, wasn't it?"

"The prime suspect's always the one who finds the body," Lavi pointed out. He patted Hikaru's shoulder. "The Akuma can be pretty smart, so I'm sure that's why it left the corpse to be found the way it did. It wanted to draw suspicion away from itself and place the blame on someone else. You two just happened to stumble across it."

"So what do we do?" Kaoru asked.

"Act like you have no idea who did it," Allen said. "Claiming it's the Akuma will just make yourselves more suspicious, and if the Akuma finds out..." He left that sentence hanging and continued instead with, "If you pretend not to know anything, they'll eventually figure out you had nothing to do with the murders."

Kanda raised an eyebrow at Allen. "You seem to know what you're talking about, Moyashi."

"I... er... was blamed for an Akuma's murderous rampage once," Allen admitted, feigning an innocent smile. "I'm kind of used to high-stress situations like these now."

Everyone gave Allen an odd look when he laughed nervously, but soon moved on to other questions of actual importance.

"So who was that girl?" Lenalee asked Kyoya. "I know she was in our class, but I never really talked to her."

Kyoya dug in his school bag and found the papers he was looking for. "Amanda Whitney, British. She's lived in Japan since the age of seven, when her parents moved here for business reasons. She's a friend of a couple of the regular customers, but has never actually been to the club herself."

"So there's no connection between her and the first victim," Tamaki stated, holding his chin in thought.

"Yes there is," Lavi said, shuddering. "She had the bad luck of stumbling across the Akuma while it was hungry. The Akuma was laying low and not kill anyone so we couldn't find it, but it must have gone berserk with that wonderful opportunity."

Mori looked hard at Allen. "When do you think it happened?"

Allen blinked. "What, the murder?" Then it clicked in his mind. "Oh! Kyoya, can you figure out who left their classrooms during seventh period? That's when the murder probably took place."

Kyoya was thoughtful a moment, then nodded. "I could probably find that out for you."

"Great." Allen turned to Link and the other exorcists, but not without waving to the hosts first. "We're gonna look around for any trace of the Akuma. You guys head home and be careful."

And that was the end of that


	6. Rave

Another week passed, and the incident with the murder was all but forgotten at the richest school in the universe. Rumors had erupted the day after the murder, and even a week later new gossip still crawled out of the woodwork, despite all the teachers did to suppress them. The Host Club and exorcists did their best in the background to stop the rumors to no avail as well.

The reason the exorcists got involved was obvious to everyone who knew about the Akuma: if anyone stumbled upon the perpetrator or thought that perhaps the person wasn't even human, the Akuma might feel cornered and go on a killing spree—something nobody involved wanted. The Host Club, however, were involved for different reasons.

In the aftermath of the incident, the customers had split into two sides: those who believed the twins innocent and those who did not. The reason for the split was the first rumor. The twins had murdered the girl in the most epic of pranks and strung up her corpse. They'd been covered in blood from the deed, which was why they stood underneath where more would drip on them. That way, they could pretend that they'd stumbled upon another student's handiwork. Or that's what the rumor said, at least.

Those on the twin's side claimed that the twins had been horrified and shocked when they'd found the body. Those against the twins argued that no one person could've strung a girl up like that. Everyone (or all the men at the school, at least) had thought the argument would blow over in a couple days' time when the police dropped them as suspects, something that didn't happen. When the police didn't proclaim the twin's innocent, things exploded. The male students who hadn't been interested in the argument at last picked sides, and soon everyone was against each other with the exorcists and the Host Club caught in the middle.

If one considered all this, it would be obvious why the Host Club tried to hold back the tide of rumors. Because of this conflict, the twins had lost many customers to the others, especially "infallible" Allen who was levelheaded enough to handle a crisis. The anti-twin group shunned those who continued to have Hikaru and Kaoru as their hosts, and there'd often be a fight outside the club about this that usually ended with the girls picking a new host—again, usually Allen. To prevent this from getting any worse than it already had, the club did their best to nip the conflict in the bud.

Unknown to the hosts, the conflict had already become a war.

"Welcome!" the club cried, only to realize that it was Haruhi—late as always—with Allen.

"Aw, we wasted a perfectly good greeting," the twins teased.

"Um... What are you all wearing?" Haruhi asked, staring at their latest costumes. Everyone except the twins was wearing white robes with small swan-feathered wings on their backs. The twins, meanwhile, were wearing identical red devil costumes like you'd see on Halloween.

"Aren't they cute?" Hunny asked, twirling in his to show off the wings and wire halo. "Haru-chan gets one too!"

"Oh joy," Haruhi muttered sidelong to Allen. She never attempted to hide her—disdain wasn't the right word for it... dislike? That worked for the moment—dislike for the various costumes. Anymore, though, she'd gotten used to it. Still, angels and demons was a bit much with circumstances the way they were, even for the Host Club.

Then the twins made matters worse—or possibly funnier—by holding up Allen's costume: a black trench coat and spectacular wings with silver edging each snow-white feather.

"What is that?" Allen asked in much the same tone as Haruhi earlier.

"You couldn't be a devil like the twins," Tamaki explained in the sing-song voice he always used when discussing costumes, "and you're far too pale to wear all white like us. Besides," he added, "with your hair, you'd just disappear in a white costume. And you're our most popular host besides me. You're costume has to be amazing to match your greatness!"

 _Flattery will get you nowhere,_ Haruhi thought, taking the costume Kyoya held out to her. She started changing, then realized something was missing from her costume. "Hey guys, the wings are..." she trailed off when she saw Allen pull back the curtain separating the changing area from the rest of the room. "Um..."

Allen opened his mouth, as if to apologize, but no sound came out. His face was the color of a very ripe tomato, something Haruhi hadn't seen in him before. After a few more unsuccessful attempts at apologizing, Allen hung his head in defeat. "I-I'm sorry," he managed after the fifth attempt. He set down the fake wings and hurried away.

Haruhi was a bit confused. Allen had been completely calm and collected when they'd found the Akuma's victim a week before, but now he seemed shell-shocked just by stumbling across a girl changing. It wasn't like he'd found her naked. She _did_ have the tank top she wore under her uniform on, after all. Then she realized that it was probably like when Tamaki had seen her. Like Tamaki, Allen had been convinced Haruhi was a boy (though this was because of the host club's deception rather than his own stupidity) and had expected to see a _guy_. Though seeing her changing was part of his embarrassment, it was probably only the icing on the cake.

A few minutes later, Haruhi stepped out of the curtained-off area and went to find Allen, who was currently being barraged by Tamaki for daring to step in on his "daughter" while she was changing. The others, especially Hunny and Kyoya, were attempting to pacify their leader by telling him that Allen hadn't had any idea that Haruhi was actually a _she_ and that it was partially their fault for forgetting he didn't know and sending him back there to give her the wings. Tamaki, however, wasn't hearing any of this.

"He already knew, I'm telling you!" he shouted, over-dramatic as always. "He knew! You remember the first day how he tackled her and—"

Haruhi decided enough was enough and interrupted him with, "That was because the Akuma was attacking and he was protecting me."

"I-I really am sorry," Allen managed, though it came out very quiet. He was still beet red, though some of the red seemed to have faded a little. It was hard to tell, as any blush stood out against his pale skin.

"It's fine," Haruhi replied. She couldn't stay mad at him when he seemed so genuinely sorry. She turned to the other host club members. "Right?"

Tamaki's eyes widened. "B-but Haruhi—"

"Allen, change into your costume before the customers get here," Kyoya stated firmly, ending the argument before they started.

Moments later, Allen returned to the club room in his black-and-silver costume, just in time for the girls entering the room to squeal in delight and bum rush their favorite British host. And that's when the real trouble started.

" _I can't believe those two have the gall dress like that so soon after murdering that girl,_ " one of Allen's customers sniffed.

" _Now, now,_ " Allen said, offering her a teacake. " _They couldn't have done it. They were in class the whole time._ "

" _But to where devil costumes,_ " she complained, " _is disrespecting the dead!_ "

Allen shrugged. " _Don't take it personally. They're just costumes. No harm done._ "

That did it. Allen hadn't realized that his current customers were part of the anti-Twin side, and the club would pay for his mistake. The two girls that he was currently entertaining stood and stormed over to the twins. Each took one twin and slapped him with all her might before stomping out of the room.

"It seems you've lost some customers," Kyoya commented from right behind Allen, making the cursed boy jump.

"I'm so sorry!" Allen apologized, bowing deeply. "I—"

A hand pulled him back up straight, and Mori shook his head, saying in his usual silent way that there was no need to apologize. Hunny was the one to voice Mori's meaning from the taller boy's back with, "It wasn't your fault, so don't apologize!" Kyoya nodded briefly in agreement before walking away.

Allen stared at the three, a little surprised that he wasn't getting blamed and a little relieved at the same time.

The relief didn't last long, however, because Tamaki held up a glass of water and tapped it with a fork. Everyone in the club, hosts included, looked up. "I have an announcement to make. As you know, we rescheduled the ball in honor of the dead, and the new date has been decided! This Saturday night, we will be hosting the Snow Ball, but there will be a slight adjustment. Instead of the regular ball, we will be..." he paused for dramatic effect, then finished with a flourish, "a rave!"

Only two words went through Haruhi's and Allen's heads, and they were exactly the same: _Oh no..._

* * *

Time seemed to speed up with the preparations, and soon, the three days between then and Saturday vanished, leaving Allen with the unpleasantness known as assuring Link that he'd be watched by one of the other exorcists at all times. As the Snow Ball—now known as the Rave—was technically a school event, only those who actually attended Ouran could go, leaving Link out in the cold—literally.

" _I'll watch the perimeter for Akuma activity or anything else that seems odd,_ " Link stated firmly.

" _Well, that's pointless,_ " Kanda groused. " _The Akuma's a student. There's no reason for it to draw attention to itself until it's inside, and by then it will be too late._ "

Lavi nodded. " _I hate to agree with Yuu-chan and his gloomy outlook on life, but he's right. We'll just have to protect everyone if it shows up._ "

The inspector frowned, but he couldn't disagree with the plan as it was the only one they had. " _Good luck,_ " he said after a moment, " _and be careful._ "

" _You too,_ " Allen called over his shoulder as they entered the school and headed into the cafeteria.

When the exorcists reached their destination, their jaws dropped. The dining hall had been transformed into a darkened dance club complete with blinking colored lights, spotlights, and even a DJ. The rich and elegant students had changed just as much as the room. Those present looked like the clubsters one would stumble upon in a real club, glow sticks and oversized jewelry included. Best of all, it seemed the feud between the two sides of the twin argument had been forgotten, if only for one night.

"Allen!"

He looked around and found Haruhi shouting over the music. She, like himself, was dressed in a flashy club-going outfit too. And she, just like him, was fighting through the crowd.

"What is it?" he asked, finding that he had to yell despite them being right in front of each other now.

Haruhi glanced around, checking to make sure nobody was listening in. When she found everyone dancing and enjoying themselves, she asked just loud enough for the exorcists to here, "What are the chances of the Akuma showing up?"

"To be honest," Lavi answered for Allen, "it's almost guaranteed. That's why we're all here. If that Akuma shows its face, we're here to wipe the floor with it."

A hand fell on Allen's arm. "Dance with me?" one of Allen's many customers asked, making goo goo eyes.

"Me after?" another girl asked.

"Then me?"

The gaggle of girls just kept growing and growing, and Allen looked helplessly to Lavi and Lenalee (as Kanda had already vanished). Lenalee turned away and disappeared into the crowd, probably to look for the Akuma, though she did appear a little angry.

Lavi let out a low whistle. " _Nice one._ "

" _Shut it,_ " Allen snapped. " _Help me out here!_ "

Bookman's apprentice nodded and flashed one of his sexiest smiles at the girls currently hanging all over Allen. "Aw, you're making me feel left out, Allen, with so many cuties on your arms. I feel like a third wheel."

The sexy smile and feigned disappointment worked. One of the girls dislodged herself from Allen and went to hang on Lavi's arm instead. "Well, we can't have that, now can we?" she asked flirtatiously. Then they left Allen with his group of fangirls.

Haruhi shook her head at Lavi. He'd hardly done anything to help. And even though she didn't like dancing too much, she turned to Allen's customers and asked, "Care to dance?"

That dislodged a few more fangirls and left Allen with only five girls to dance with. The only problem that remained was that Allen had no idea how one danced at a rave. Had it been a normal ball, he could have faked a waltz well enough, but the up tempo music had him at a complete loss. So in the end, he faked it as best he could, and it worked out pretty well. And it only took twenty minutes to dance with each girl in turn and escape to the sidelines.

It turns out, the wall he decided to prop up was also Haruhi's current haunt. "Are you tired?" Haruhi asked.

"Not particularly," Allen replied with a shrug. "I just need a break from the customers."

"I completely understand."

They stood together for a while in companionable silence. Well, silence between them. The music was blaring so loudly, it would've been impossible to hear the other anyway.

Eventually, the customers found Allen and Haruhi again, and they ended up dancing more. Not that either really minded. It was surprisingly fun being able to goof off and not have to act like a rich person. Though, the fun was cut short for Allen.

It was the strangest thing. Since his first host club meeting, Allen's eye hadn't bothered him in the least. Then, all of a sudden while dancing, a sharp pain shot through his scar and pierced his eye. Allen let out a yelp and gripped the source of the pain.

The girls he'd been dancing with stopped and rushed closer to him. "Are you all right?"

"Did you get something in your eye?"

"Do you—"

"I'm fine," Allen said, hand still over his eye and managing a pained smile. "My contact's bothering me is all. I'll be right back."

It wasn't far to the clubroom, and Allen decided to see what was wrong with his eye there, where it was quiet and he could think. It was also empty, another plus.

A quick look in the mirror there, and Allen let out a small curse. His eye was red and swollen, almost like he'd gotten something in his eye. He covered his good eye to test his cursed eye's vision. He could still see, but his vision was clouded with tears. _At least I'm not blind._ He breathed a sigh of relief and turned to go but paused a moment when a thought struck him.

He'd tested just about every mirror in the school and had just about given up all hope on the Innocence being the rumored mirror. Only now did he realize he'd completely forgotten the clubroom's mirror. It was just too close, too easy. But this wasn't the first time an Innocence was right in front of his face without him realizing what it was. A primary example being Count Krory.

He turned back to the mirror and said hopefully, " _Mystic mirror please show me with who it is I'm meant to be._ "

At first, there was nothing. Then, the mirror's image swirled, and Allen's breathed a sigh of relief. Once the reflection stopped swirling, though, he wished that he hadn't let the air out of his lungs. What he saw reflected in the mirror made him forget to breath.

In the mirror was Lenalee, and not the Lenalee Allen had known so long. The reflected Lenalee wasn't in uniform and didn't have her hair short anymore. The reflected Lenalee instead was wearing the cutest sweater Allen had ever seen and had a sparkling snowflake hairpin in her long hair.

Allen gaped at the image. It wasn't like a painting. It smiled and placed a hand on the glass, like Allen was simply looking at the real thing through a window and not a mirror.

The door creaked almost too loudly behind him, and Allen just reacted.

"Allen?" Haruhi stepped inside and scanned the room. "Are you all..." she trailed off when she saw Allen blocking the mirror from her view. "Should I ask what's going on?"

"No," Allen replied, glancing over his shoulder. It seemed that the image of Lenalee had disappeared, and so he relaxed a little. "Go find Le—Lavi." He just couldn't say Lenalee's name.

Haruhi nodded and went to go find the exorcists, though she didn't understand why he'd started to say Lenalee and switched to Lavi.

Alone again, Allen turned back to the mirror. The reflection really had disappeared, much to his relief. Though, as soon as he thanked God that the mirror wasn't showing her anymore, the image returned. This time, however, the mirror seemed to want to tease him. Instead of a cute winter outfit, Lenalee was in a bikini and grinning at him.

And of course, it was that moment when the door opened again and the other exorcists walked in.

"Allen, what are you doing?" Lenalee asked, staring at her comrade. He was blocking the view of the mirror, much as he had when Haruhi had stumbled upon him.

"You scared me. I thought you might be the Akuma," Allen lied. He glanced over his shoulder once more to make sure the image was gone. When he was positive there wasn't anything he could get in trouble for behind him, he stepped aside and said, "I've found the Innocence. This mirror's the one in the rumor. No doubt about it."


	7. Final Battle

" _So this is the magic mirror,_ " Lavi said, looking the item in question up and down. **"** _How do you know that?_ "

" _Er... I said the rhyme in the rumor and it changed,_ " Allen explained dumbly. How did Lavi think he figured it out? Just by looking?

The redhead grinned broadly. " _Then who did it show you?_ " he teased. " _Who's your true love, hm? Hmmm?_ "

"Lavi, leave him alone," Lenalee said in Japanese so the rest of the host club wouldn't be as lost in the quick-spoken English. "Allen doesn't have to tell you anything."

Lavi stuck his tongue out at the Chinese girl. "Well, I wanna see what it shows _me_ as proof." He then recited the little rhyme. Nothing appeared in the glass as far as anyone else could tell, but obviously Lavi saw something, for his eyes had widened to the size of dinner plates. "Dude! No! No way! Stop joking around!" he shouted at the mirror, grabbing its sides and shaking it. Obviously the image had changed, for the junior Bookman let out another cry of shock and said, "No! Not Panda! Go back to Yuu-chan! At least he _looks_ like a girl!"

Needless to say, Kanda punched him for that comment. "What are you _talking_ about?" he demanded. There was no humor in his voice, just sheer anger.

"The mirror must have a sense of humor or something, 'cause it showed me you first, then Gramps."

The Host Club didn't understand his reference to Bookman's nickname, but Lenalee did, and she raised an eyebrow at him. "Lavi, if there's something you're not telling us, we totally understand and—"

Lavi gave her the deer-in-the-headlights look. "Ew. No. Women for me, thanks. Yuu-chan may look pretty like a girl, but—" He didn't get a chance to finish his sentence before Kanda smacked him upside the head again.

"So what do we do with it?" Haruhi asked, the most practical of the group. "The mirror, I mean."

" _We_ take it back to the Order," Kanda growled. " _You_ stay here and act like you didn't see anything."

"Now Kanda," Allen said a little darkly. "That's not very polite. You could say please and thank you once in a while. It won't kill you."

Kanda glared at Allen, and that was the end of that.

"So now all that's left is the Akuma?" Kyoya prompted.

"Hopefully we'll be able to find it," Lavi replied.

Kanda sniffed. "Stupid. It's not that hard to find an Akuma. We just need the right bait."

"What would you suggest using as 'bait'?" Tamaki asked, eagerly pulling out his cellphone. "Cow? Chicken?"

" _You._ "

Tamaki dropped the phone.

"You can't use Tama-kun!" Big tears were falling down Hunny's cheeks, making him seem like more of a Kindergartner than a senior in high school. "The Akuma kills people, right? If Tama-kun dies..."

"People will want him back," Kanda stated simply.

"And the Earl will want to take advantage of that," Lenalee muttered, figuring out exactly where Kanda was going with this. "Of course. He's a big target. If Tamaki or any of the host club dies, there are plenty of people who would want you back!"

"So he'll sick the Akuma on Tamaki if he's alone," Lavi finished. "Seems plausible enough."

"Don't I get a say in this?" Tamaki asked, but the idea had gone too far already to be stopped. Even members of the club, who were at first against the idea, were starting to see the logic of it and nodding in agreement. "Come on, guys! This is dangerous and—"

"We'll make you an honorary member of the Black Order," Lavi offered. "You'll get a reward. And our eternal gratitude."

Tamaki pondered this a moment, then agreed. Now only Allen and Haruhi were left against it.

"Is this safe?" Haruhi whispered to Allen.

"No. I'm not sure why they're going along with Kanda's idea." Allen frowned at his fellow exorcists. "This is dangerous. We can't put Tamaki in danger. He shouldn't even be involved."

"A little late for that," the twins said, laying their arms on his shoulders. "Tamaki loves being center of attention."

And so it was decided. They would lure the Akuma out tonight outside the rave wearing a Rose Cross pin on this outfits—something Johnny had given them before they left in case they needed to make themselves targets to the Akuma. Once it was out in the open that exorcists were present, they would "disappear," leaving the Akuma face-to-face with Tamaki. As Tamaki didn't know about the Akuma as far as the monster was concerned, it would then attempt to kill him thinking him an easy target. Then Lavi would block the Akuma's attack with his hammer, leaving Lenalee, Kanda, and Allen to defeat the Akuma while he got Tamaki out of there. A good plan, as far as all but Haruhi and Allen were concerned.

So they set the plan in motion. The exorcists put on their 'target' and ambled through the crowded rave. Even if no one else noticed, the Akuma would see them, and that was all they needed.

"Allen!"

Allen tried to ignore the girl. He didn't want to get caught unawares simply because a girl was distracting him.

"I'm talking to you, Allen!" Renge grabbed Allen's shoulder. "Where are you going in such a hurry?"

"I have to go home," Allen lied. "I'm getting a headache because of my contacts. I'd like to stay, but..." He caught sight of it. There was a girl maybe three feet away, staring at his crest.

The girl frowned, and a couple of her friends asked her what was wrong. But she only had eyes for Allen—no, for his Rose Cross. Then her body started contorting. Her friends let out a scream.

"Get down!" Allen shouted, invoking his Crowned Clown and covering as many of the party-goers as he could.

But the gunshots didn't come. Instead, he heard the clash of metal against metal, and the crash of something against a wall. Allen dared to look up and saw Lavi standing behind him, hammer the huge and the Akuma smashed against the wall.

"Good thing these people are rich, neh?" Lavi asked, eye twinkling. "We don't have to hold back because of damage costs."

"Lavi—"

"Get them out of here. Civilians shouldn't get involved, right?"

Allen nodded and helped Renge and a couple other girls up. "Come on, we need to leave."

Renge stared up at him, a mixture of horror and awe on her face. "What is—?"

"No time," Allen said quickly. He ushered her and a couple other people out into the halls and told them to get as far from the school as possible for their own safety.

"So you _are_ my dream guy," Renge cheered before she got lost in the rush of students trying to escape.

Back inside the room, things were a mess. Lenalee was still escorting the few stragglers who'd been trapped out while Lavi and Kanda tried to destroy the Akuma in complete disregard to the building. Even Link, who must've gotten in through the new hole in the wall, was offering assistance by blocking the Akuma's attacks from the people Lenalee was evacuating.

The Akuma, Allen could now see, was a Level Three, but it didn't fit the typical pattern he'd seen in the Level Threes past. This one had long fingers with strings dangling off the fingertips and one large eye. It didn't look remotely human as the others tended to.

Allen grabbed his wrist, just to be safe, and drew his Crowned Clown's sword. It still felt weird, taking his arm off like that, but it was worth the strange feel for the power boost.

The Akuma grinned. "Too bad, human," it said in a gravelly voice that didn't remotely match the girl's form it took. "You lose."

The threads on its fingers launched and attached to each of Allen's limbs with a sharp stinging pain. Allen gasped out and tried to rip the strings from his skin, but before he could, the strings went taut.

He couldn't move. The strings kept him from moving. Then, the Akuma moved its fingers like one handles a marionette and Allen started moving because of the sharp, painful tugs in the string. His arm lifted, and his sword came down on Lavi.

"Allen! What're you doing?" the redhead asked, dodging the blade. He knew it couldn't harm humans, but with the way things had been going lately, it was better to be safe than sorry.

"I can't control my body!" Allen's arm swung the sword down again, this time catching Lavi's shoulder. As expected, the weapon passed harmlessly through the older boy. "It's these strings!"

No sooner had he said it than were they cut. Kanda had seen the Akuma attach its weapon to Allen—unlike Lavi—and was able to get a clear shot. Allen fell to the ground in a crumpled heap. His body, though freed from the Akuma's strings, was numb. Like cutting the strings from a marionette.

The Akuma laughed. "That's my power, you see," it taunted as new strings appeared to replace the cut ones on its fingers. "I am the puppet master, and all you come to obey me are no more than puppets as long as they're connected to my strings."

Stupid thing. It had given away how its power worked and gave Allen an idea. "Lavi," he hissed. "Rip the strings out. They're keeping me from moving."

"Yuu-chan, can you keep the Akuma busy?" Lavi asked.

"Long enough for you to help the Moyashi," Kanda replied, raising his blood-red katana. He charged, hacking at any of the Akuma's threads that dared come anywhere near him.

Lavi grabbed the lengths of string still attached to Allen and pulled with all his might. They came out easily, but not without tearing the skin each was embedded in. Allen let out a small yelp of pain, but there was no time to have his many new wounds treated.

"Are you okay, Allen?" Lenalee asked, horrified by the blood dripping down Allen's arm and legs. She'd just returned from evacuating the last of the party-goers.

"Been better," Allen answered truthfully. He raised his sword and gave a quick summary of what had just happened. "We have to beat it before it controls anyone else."

"A little help, Moyashi!" Kanda shouted, cutting a few more strands. He couldn't get close enough to the Akuma to defeat it without a distraction. If he got anywhere near the thing, he'd have to retreat to keep from getting controlled, and while Allen's Innocence was harmless to all but himself, Kanda's was a completely different story.

"On it!" Allen shouted, dashing closer. The threads shot at him and he swung to cut them, but they went around the cutting edge and kept going. _What?_ Allen spun around just in time to see the threads attach to Haruhi and Tamaki.

"Morons!" Kanda shouted. "You were supposed to stay outside!"

"Hee hee!" The Akuma clapped its hands gleefully and then tugged the two hosts into the air before it. "You can't attack as long as I've got human shields."

Lavi raised his hammer, ready to use one of his stamps, but Lenalee grabbed the handle and stopped him. "Don't! If you hit one of them..." Lavi growled in irritation.

"Then what are we supposed to do?" he asked.

"You're little weapon might not be able to effect other exorcists," it continued to Allen, "but what regular humans?" It laughed again.

Allen had an idea. So the Akuma thought that the sword only couldn't affect accommodaters. It didn't realize that it didn't harm humans—excepting himself—as well. He readied his sword and shouted to Haruhi, "You trust me, right?"

The female host closed her eyes and nodded. Tamaki, meanwhile, was freaking out. "What do you plan to do? You aren't going to hit us with that big sword, are you?"

Allen jumped into the air, and as suspected, the Akuma used its human shields. It tried to block with Tamaki, the one who didn't trust the exorcist, thinking that Haruhi's trust would somehow save her.

It was over in a matter of seconds. The sword slid harmlessly through Tamaki's chest and stabbed straight into the Akuma. They seemed to hang like that, suspended for a moment, before Tamaki and Haruhi dropped to the ground because of the disintegrating threads.

Allen's curse activated at long last, the monocle covering his eye. He could see the soul of the Akuma detach itself from the body of the disintegrating beast. He could hear its soul thank him for its freedom before disappearing.

Something clicked to the floor, badly damaged from the direct hit by Allen's Innocence. He bent down and picked up the pendent and frowned at the symbol scratched into its surface. When it had been destroyed, his eye had reacted instantly. Was this what was blocking his sight for so long? Some magic object?

"Are you all right?" he asked, turning to Haruhi and Tamaki. The two looked uninjured, and only Tamaki looked mad about all this. He started going on about how he could've died, despite Lenalee's assurances that the sword didn't harm humans and Kanda's blatant point that they shouldn't have been there in the first place.

"As long as nobodies hurt," Haruhi said, seemingly unphased by the whole event. She rubbed her arms where the strings had attached themselves, frowning at the sting, but other than that, she was perfectly fine.

The rest of the host club appeared than, using the hole in the wall as their entrance, and rushed to their "king" and fellow host. They started fussing over them both, giving the exorcists a chance to look at Allen's discovery.

"Well, I suppose that could work, considering the Earl found out how to block your eye at that orphanage," Lavi hypothesized, turning the amulet this way and that. "It's a distinct possibility, but the Order'll have to take a look to confirm that."

"Before that, we should bandage you up," Lenalee said, her voice oddly strained, even for after a battle where there were people injured. "There's a first aid kit in the music room."

* * *

A few days later, once everything had calmed down at school and the exorcists had convinced everyone that there must've been "something in the punch" or that they'd all had extremely realistic nightmares, it was time to head home. All of Allen's customers cried upon hearing that he was transferring back to England with all his friends and insisted that there be a farewell party, which the Host Club more than happily agreed to and set up without Allen's knowledge.

Boy, was he surprised when he walked into the room and everyone set off the party poppers for him and the other exorcists, who'd been invited as well. There were plenty of smiles and tears, and despite the solemnity of the occasion, the twins managed to get one prank in. They set off smoke bombs at the end, forcing everyone from the room.

It was a useful and planned prank, though, and gave the exorcists time to collect the mirror without any other students around to hand over to Link, who would be taking it to the Order ahead of them all on Komui's orders, much to the Crow assassin's annoyance. He complained that he was more than just a delivery boy and that he was supposed to be watching Allen, but Komui had instructed him otherwise.

Once Allen's "babysitter"—as Lenalee had explained it to the Host Club—had gone, the Hunny asked, "Are we ever gonna see you again?"

"Probably not," Lavi replied with a shrug. "We have to go all over the place, so we might not make it back here. You might meet some of our comrades, though."

"Can you text us every so often?" the twins asked. They more than anyone had become attached to the exorcists, especially Kanda, as he was the most fun to annoy. Lavi was a close second, though.

Kanda scoffed at this. "We don't have phones."

"What Kanda means to say," Lenalee explained, " is that it's Order policy that we can't keep contacts like this for everyone's safety. I'm sorry, but we can't even send letters."

"Harsh," Tamaki muttered. "But that's why we've got one last present for you guys." He nodded to Kyoya, who handed Allen a box. "From the Host Club to you all."

Allen opened the box and smiled. Inside was a framed picture, one of all of them that had been taken at the beginning of the party. The club and the exorcists were in the center of the photo, and a couple girls had sneaked into the frame, as had Renge in the corner with eyes only for Allen. She'd been the only one not to believe the whole drug-induced nightmare and refused to hear any different from anyone.

The club looked at him expectantly. "I don't know what to say," he said after a few seconds. " _We_ don't know what to say."

"Just say you'll come see us if you're ever back in town," Tamaki insisted. The rest of the club nodded in agreement.

"Thank you so much," Lenalee said, smiling at the club.

"By the way..." the twins said, smirking. "What was it exactly that you saw in that mirror anyway?"

Allen turned bright red. "N-none of your business!" He turned and headed for the door. "Come on, guys, we need to get going." The others said their quick good-byes—Kanda's being the quickest and most disinterested—and left to follow after Link. Allen paused and said, "Thanks for everything. I did have a lot of fun while I was here." He bowed, and then went after them.

* * *

Things returned to normal, and Allen and the gang became nothing more than memories to everyone. The murderer was never found, and only the Host Club—and Renge, who still couldn't be convinced otherwise—knew the truth. Finals were coming up, and everyone had to get busy studying. Soon, the exorcists were completely forgotten except for the few who could never forget them. Those people were the Host Club.

"Haru-chan! Haru-chan!" Hunny called. "Come on! Come on!" He was tugging on Haruhi's hand, and she had to run to keep up.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

"You won't believe it! Never, never!"

They reached the club room, and when the doors were flung open by the other impatient hosts, Haruhi's eyes met silver ones. And dark blue ones. And violet ones. And a green one.

And everyone, host and exorcists alike, smiled.

**_The End_ **


End file.
